Sunday, June 28, 2015; 7 AM; Overland Park, KS

June 8, 2015

Rev. Dr. J. Alfred Smith, Jr.

June 8, 2015 - BPFNA ~ Bautistas por la Paz announce that Rev. Dr. J. Alfred Smith, Jr. will be the Keynote Speaker at this year's Peace Breakfast at the American Baptist Churches Mission Summit in Overland Park, KS. The breakfast will be at 7 a.m. on Sunday, June 28 and costs $20. Rev. Smith will speak on The Black Lives Matter Movement: A Call to Christian Action and will connect this issue with other national and international issues that deal with oppressive structures of dehumanization.

Rev. Dr. J. Alfred Smith, Jr. has served as the senior pastor of the Allen Temple Baptist Church of Oakland, CA since March 2009. Dr. Smith succeeded his father and mentor, Rev. Dr. J. Alfred Smith, Sr. who served for 40 years and is now honored as the pastor emeritus.

Pastor Smith Jr.'s education includes a D. Min. from San Francisco Theological Seminary in San Anselmo, CA; a M.Div. from the Starr King School for the Ministry (at the Graduate Theological Union) in Berkeley, CA; and a B.A. from Antioch University in Yellow Springs, OH.

Pastor Smith has continued the Allen Temple tradition of excellence in holistic ministry by leading the congregation in planning and implementing ministry strategies to address the ever-changing needs of the congregation and community. Some of the newly staffed ministries include ordained ministers in the following areas: Prophetic Justice, Global Ministries, Deliverance & Recovery, Spiritual Life, Civic Partnerships, and Streets Disciples Ministry (a ministry which seeks to rescue women and girls from the bondage of human trafficking).

Before being called as the senior pastor of the Allen Temple Baptist Church, Pastor Smith served for nearly six years as the senior pastor of the historic Antioch Baptist Church of San Jose CA, a congregation organized in 1893 - the first official African American historical landmark in that city. Under Smith’s leadership the congregation launched several new ministries, including: the Antioch Housing & Economic Development Corporation, the “Nu- Vision” Young Adult Ministry, and a variety of outreach ministries to the local community.

Prior to his return to Allen Temple, Pastor Smith taught “Black Religion” in the Africana Studies Department at San Francisco State University, and “Theology of Ministry” in the Doctor of Ministry program at San Francisco Theological Seminary. He also served two years as a ministry consultant in Las Vegas, NV, and as an ESL instructor for the Community College of Southern Nevada.

Throughout the years, Pastor Smith has been a prophetic voice and an activist for social, economic, and political justice. This advocacy has recently included justice and peace movements such as: Oakland Ceasefire, Black Lives Matter, and Kairos Palestine. Early in his ministry, he was active in the Bay Area Free South Africa movement; the “Take the Billboards Down” campaign which abolished alcohol and tobacco billboards in areas frequented by children in Oakland, CA; and several campaigns on behalf of children, youth, seniors, the poor, and people living with HIV/AIDS.

Pastor Smith recently co-authored with Dr. Tyrone Pitts and Dr. Brad Stewart, the, entitled: Supporting Those with Advanced Illness through Community- Health System Partnerships the spotlight article in the Summer 2014 issue of Public Policy & Aging Report, published by Oxford Journals, Oxford University Press. He has also co-authored with Dr. J. Alfred Smith, Sr. Basic Bible Sermons in Christian Stewardship, published in 1992 by Broadman Press; and Songs of Hope from Dungeons of Despair in Preach On! By J. Alfred Smith, Sr. Broadman Press, 1984. He and his work have been featured, discussed, or quoted in the news media, including: San Jose Mercury News, Detroit News, Oakland Tribune, Sacramento Bee, Wall Street Journal, Forbes Magazine, and NBC’s Today Show; as well as in books (i.e. Andrew Billingsley’s Mighty Like a River: The Black Church and Social Reform).
Pastor Smith is married to Elaine Henderson Smith, a retired public school teacher. Pastor and Mrs. Smith are the proud parents of five and grandparents of nine.

Conflict Transformation: transforming conflict into peaceful outcomes. Conflict Transformation approaches differ from those of conflict management or conflict resolution, seeking to transform the relationships that support violence by identifying long-standing issues and inequities.

This special one-day training gives you the opportunity to experience a taste of this transformation while learning specific skills that will help you address conflict in your own situation.

The cost includes the one-day workshop, all the handouts and a boxed lunch.